CAREERS

We want engineers who are motivated by

• Working on technically nontrivial problems with clear real-world impact.
• Seeing a straight line from their work to the airplane and to the operator.
• Building alongside strong peers and technically engaged leadership.

What you'll do

• Own one or more aircraft subsystems (e.g., structures, hydrodynamics, mechanisms, systems integration) from concept through test and flight.
• Translate high-level mission and performance goals into clear engineering requirements and a small set of critical metrics.
• Develop and iterate designs using analysis, simulation, and test—then simplify ruthlessly, removing complexity before optimizing what remains.
• Work directly with manufacturing, test, and flight ops to close the loop between design and reality, rapidly incorporating feedback.
• Participate in intensive design and failure reviews where ideas are challenged, data wins, and good arguments can change the plan.
• Write clear documentation only where it changes decisions or unlocks execution (test plans, interface definitions, design decisions).

How we work

• Mission-driven: Every project ties back to a small set of aircraft-level metrics (payload, range, dispatch reliability, water performance, operating cost).
• Engineers lead: Technical leaders are practicing engineers who can review your calculations, CAD, and test data—and expect the same scrutiny in return.
• Ownership: Each engineer is the “chief engineer” for something meaningful; you are responsible for its performance, integration, and ongoing improvement.
• Small, high-talent teams: We bias toward fewer, stronger people with large scope rather than many people doing narrow glue work.
• Hard problems, real constraints: You will work on real trade-offs (weight vs strength, performance vs cost, hydrodynamics vs aerodynamics) with tangible consequences.
• Minimal bureaucracy: Short approval chains, direct communication with decision-makers, and a focus on building, testing, and shipping.

The right people

Catalina Aircraft Company is a fit if you are the kind of engineer who:

• Is energized by ambitious, technically difficult goals more than by titles or perks.
• Wants your manager and company leadership to be able to engage your work at a deep technical level.
• Prefers clear, sometimes demanding expectations over vague comfort; you like to see what “hardcore but justified” actually means.
• Takes pride in being useful: you measure yourself by the quality, reliability, and impact of what you build.

Useful skills

• Degree in aerospace, mechanical, naval architecture, or a closely related engineering field (or equivalent demonstrable experience).
• 5+ years of hands-on engineering experience in aircraft, spacecraft, marine, or similarly complex mechanical systems.
• Strong fundamentals in at least one relevant domain: structures, fluid dynamics, hydrodynamics, controls, mechanisms, systems integration, or certification engineering.
• Demonstrated history of owning and delivering challenging projects end-to-end (e.g., major design, new test program, significant redesign under constraints).
• Proficiency with modern CAD and analysis tools appropriate to your discipline.

Also helpful

• Experience with seaplanes, amphibious operations, or marine structures.
• Experience taking hardware from concept to production or from prototype to certified configuration.
• Comfort in fast-moving environments where designs are iterated aggressively based on test and operator feedback.
• Clear, concise communication: you can explain complex trade-offs to both specialists and non-specialists.

In 18 months

• You are recognized as the go-to “engineer” for a significant subsystem and can explain its design, trades, and limitations from first principles.
• Your work has measurably improved at least one aircraft-level metric (e.g., reduced weight, improved water handling, easier maintenance, lower build cost).
• You’ve led at least one major design or test effort from definition through execution and documented the key decisions that will guide future work.

Benjamin Folger, CEO